WASHINGTON – US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the decision to reimpose a series of sanctions on Iran, which the United States had lifted following the 2015 nuclear accord, was taken in the interest of world peace.

“The Iran sanctions have officially been cast...Anyone doing business with Iran will NOT be doing business with the United States. I am asking for WORLD PEACE, nothing less!” Trump wrote on Twitter.

The renewal of sanctions seeks to isolate Tehran economically, forcing foreign companies to close their businesses in Iran, though it also threatens to estrange the United States even more from the European Union, since the sanctions will affect European companies.

To restore those penalties, Trump signed an executive order Monday establishing a ban on trading precious metals including gold and such materials as aluminum and steel, as well as on the sale of automobiles manufactured in Iran, among other measures.

On Nov. 5, a second round of sanctions will take effect, including the prohibition of financial transactions with Iran’s central bank and the oil sector, one of the country’s chief sources of foreign currency.

In that sense, Trump said Tuesday that these penalties, which he considers “the most biting sanctions ever imposed,” will be raised “to yet another level” when the second round is imposed.

The renewed sanctions come 90 days after Trump announced his country’s withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear accord signed by Iran and the G5+1, made up of Russia, China, the United Kingdom, France, the United States and Germany.

The other signatories remain committed to the pact and are negotiating with Iran to counteract the damage done by the sanctions.

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